ƛfter the wedding ceremony, there was a banquet and a ball in honor of the prince and his bride. The king and queen sat at the head of the table. Prince Ben sat next to his mother and Rey was seated next to him. She already felt uncomfortable sitting so close to him, but she tried to ignore his presence as best she could. She didn't want to be anywhere near him, but she didn't have a choice.

Ben scanned the dining hall, looking for his uncle. He thought that perhaps he had missed him somehow in the chapel. He was surprised that his uncle wasn't here, he never missed royal occasions of this importance. It certainly wasn't like him to miss a family wedding, especially because he and Ben had been close once. He hoped that his uncle was alright.

He looked around at all of the guests, he knew most of them. Nobles, royalty, knights, but he didn't see any commoners. Where are Rey's parents...her family? he wondered. Shouldn't they have a seat at the table of honor? As he thought about it he remembered that it was a tradition for the bride's father to walk her down the aisle. Why did my father escort her? he wondered quietly. He wanted to ask her, but he was nervous and it seemed too personal to be the first thing that he said to her.

Still, he wanted to spark some kind of conversation with her, already he liked her but he wanted to get to know her. He wanted to learn everything that he could about her. But he was nervous, it would be the first time he spoke to her beyond their vows. He wasn't used to talking to girls, and by the way she kept avoiding him, he didn't think she would welcome it if he tried to start a conversation with her.

What's the worst that could happen? he thought, then his mind began to go over various scenarios. He could embarrass himself in front of his parents, the royal court, and the woman he would spend his life with. He could offend her without meaning to. He didn't want to do that.

But alternatively, he could spend the rest of his life alone because he hadn't dared to speak to the person who should be closer to him than anyone else.

He took a deep breath, he had to at least try. He looked over at the beautiful young woman at his side.

"How long have you lived here at the castle, my lady?" he asked in a conversational tone. It seemed like a good way to start a conversation. Or at least, he hoped it was.

She turned to look at him, she didn't want to talk to him. "Two years," she replied simply, using as few words as possible.

He nodded. "Do you like it here?"

She nodded, she didn't want to speak to him unless it was necessary to do so.

"That's good," he said a little awkwardly. He looked around as if trying to think of something else to say. "I want you to be happy," he added at last.

"Thank you, your majesty," she replied. She didn't want to address him in a personal way. It was the first step towards having a personal relationship, one she didn't want to take.

But she knew that she was only fooling herself. She couldn't just go on pretending that they weren't married. She couldn't keep pretending that their relationship was a professional one like that of a servant and a prince. She was married to him and that meant she'd most likely be sharing her meals with him from now on. And she knew that she would be sharing a room with him too. She knew that she couldn't be married to him without having a personal relationship with him, even she hated him.

And that only made it worse. She didn't have to think about a stranger, but how could she not think about her husband even if she didn't love him? It made her feel somewhat betrayed that her husband had killed her father. Even if hadn't known at the time that she would one day become his wife.

Ben was about to tell her that there was no need for formalities between them when the servers came in and placed a beautiful wedding cake on the table. It was chocolate with white icing and had four tiered layers.

Rey looked at the cake amazed, it was even more beautiful than she'd imagined. She hadn't told King Han or Queen Leia, but the reason she had asked them if they could have chocolate cake for the wedding was because she had never tried it before. She wanted to know if tasted as good as everyone said.

Normally the king and queen would have been served first. But since the bride and groom were the guests of honor, they were supposed to be served first. As soon as the cake was cut, one of the servants moved to give Ben the first slice.

Ben held up a hand to stop him. "Please, serve my wife first."

The servant nodded and passed the plate to Rey. She was surprised, she'd eaten with the king and queen before but she had never eaten at a royal banquet before. She certainly didn't expect to be served first. She had to admit that she was a little surprised by the kind gesture from the prince. She hadn't expected someone so cruel to allow her to go first, but that didn't change anything.

Out of politeness, she waited until everyone else had been served before she began to eat. As soon as everyone had been served, she took a bite of her cake. It was even more delicious than she'd imagined. It was the most wonderful thing she'd ever tasted.

Ben smiled slightly as he watched her, she almost acted like she'd never tasted chocolate cake before.

꧁❀꧂

Once the meal was finished, everyone gathered on the ballroom floor.

"The first dance of the night belongs to you and your bride, Ben," Han told his son.

"Yes, Father," he replied, feeling a bit nervous. He would have to ask her to dance with him. She hadn't seemed to want to talk to him at the banquet and she'd been avoiding him since they came to the ballroom. He didn't think she would welcome his presence, let alone want to dance with him. He took a deep breath and walked over to where Rey stood.

She glared at him as he approached. Most men were afraid when she gave them that look, but there was no fear in his eyes only sadness and pain. He seemed hurt deep down that she looked at him that way. But she didn't care, she wanted him to know how much she hated him.

He stretched his hand out to her. "The first dance belongs to us... your highness," he said with a small bow.

Rey wanted to refuse him, but he was treating her with such kindness and respect that she felt slightly guilty for being so cold towards him. Why did he call her "your highness"? Why did he bow to her as if she was royalty when he was a prince and she was just a servant?

She took a deep breath, it would be rude to refuse to dance with him on their wedding day. Everyone was watching her and refusing him would only embarrass her. Beyond that, she knew that it was tradition and as the soon-to-be princess of Alderaan, she was subject to the traditions held by the royal family. Timidly, she accepted his hand and allowed him to lead her onto the dance floor.

He held her hand gently and looked deeply into her eyes. Suddenly he felt nervous about being so close to her, the only woman he'd ever danced with was his mother and that had been when he was a child. It seemed so different to dance with a girl that he felt attracted to.

He'd faced many battles in his life, seen war, blood, and death. None of it had frightened him, but fear is born of a lack of understanding and love was something that he didn't understand. So he feared it, though he needed it.

He gulped nervously as he placed his hand on her lower back.

Rey inhaled sharply as she felt his arms around her, and the touch of his hand on her back. Slowly she lifted her hand and nervously placed it on his shoulder.

His dark eyes searched hers, as he led her in a slow graceful dance. She felt that she couldn't escape his stare, just as she had imagined, it felt as if his eyes were piercing through her to see her heart. Could he see the hate for him that was buried there, the pain he'd caused her?

She felt as if he could see it all, but that didn't bother her she wanted him to know. What did bother her was the way he looked at her, with admiration even though she had made it clear that she hated him. He continued to stare into her eyes, even though she was shooting daggers out of them.

Finally, she couldn't take it any longer. Since she was young, she had imagined him to be the most terrible person on the face of the planet. She almost wished that he was it would make her feel more justified for her hatred towards him. But she had meant far worse people on the streets.

"Why are you being so kind to me, your majesty?" Rey whispered.

He leaned down closer to her ear, sending a shiver down her spine. "You're my wife," he whispered. "And you don't have to call me 'your majesty.'"

"But... I'm no one. I'm nothing," she said.

"Not to me," he said softly, as he gently squeezed her hand.

Something about his words and the soft way that he spoke them melted the icy hate towards him in her heart for just a moment.

She closed her eyes, being so close to him was comforting for reasons that she couldn't understand. Perhaps because no one had held her like this for many years...not since her father died.

Tears welled up in her eyes, and she clenched her fists in anger. What was she doing? He killed her father. It was because of him that she had spent so many years alone on the streets. She pushed her way out of his arms, none too gently, and hurried off of the ballroom floor.

He stood there with his arms stretched out for a moment watching as she ran away, not even daring to look back at him. His hands dropped to his sides as he saw her leaving the ballroom floor. He could feel his heart breaking in his chest. He had thought that she was beginning to feel the same way that he did. But he was wrong, she didn't love him, and she never would. She didn't even like him.

Rey went over to where King Han and Queen Leia stood, forcing herself to smile and act natural. She hoped that they hadn't seen her abandon their son on the dance floor.

King Han turned to offer her a smile. He reached his hand out to her. "May I have this dance?"

Rey smiled at him and accepted his hand. "Of course your majesty."

Han led her out onto the dance floor as the next dance began.

Ben came over to stand next to his mother, watching his father dance with Rey. He let out a sigh.

"What's wrong?" Leia asked him.

"Nothing," he replied.

She gave him a look of disbelief.

"I don't think that she likes me," he said.

"Oh Ben, just give her time. This is a big adjustment for her. She just needs to get to know you, one day she will come to love you. I know you two can work things out and learn to love one another."

"I don't know that she will, mother. She doesn't even want to talk to me."

"Well, she's not used to any of this," Leia gestured to the crowd of royalty and nobles. "We have to give her time and help her feel welcome. Just keep trying, don't give up."

Ben nodded, taking a deep breath as Rey and his father came back over to join them.

Ben looked over at his mother, seeking advice.

She nodded towards Rey as if trying to get him to talk to her or ask her for a dance.

Ben took a deep breath, gathering his courage, then he stepped towards her. He offered her his hand, timidly. "Will you step out onto the balcony with me, my lady?"

Rey wanted to refuse him, she glanced over at Han and Leia. They were looking at her expectantly. She knew they wanted her to go with their son, she sighed inwardly, she didn't want to disappoint them. She reached over and took his hand, instantly regretting it as she felt the hate burn under her skin at the contact.

Ben lead her out of the ballroom and onto a balcony that overlooked the castle gardens.

He looked up at the stars that filled the night sky. They had only been standing out there for a few moments, but already an awkward silence had come between them.

"It's a beautiful night," Ben attempted to break the tension, but she only nodded in reply.

"Um..." he began, trying to think of something to talk about. "Do you like stargazing?"

She didn't want to reply, she loved stargazing, next to wandering the meadows and reading it was her favorite thing to do, but she didn't want to tell him that. She didn't want him to know anything about her, and she didn't want to have anything in common with him either.

He looked at her expectantly and finally she gave in. "Yes, I do."

"Do you want to stay up late and watch them with me?"

She felt a pain in her heart, she and her father had often stayed up late to watch the stars. It had been their special time together, that was why she loved stargazing so. She always thought of her father when she looked at the stars, she always imagined that he was up there somewhere watching her. How she could do the same thing with the very man who had taken him from her?

"No. I can't," she said, unable to hide the anger in her voice. She turned away from him, facing the door that led to the ballroom.

He turned to look at her, he could tell that she was upset but as when they were dancing together. He didn't understand why. "I'm sorry if I said something that offended you, my lady. I only wanted to spend time with you, I want to get to know you."

She didn't reply, staying quiet for several moments. "It's getting late, I'm a little tired. I think I'll go to bed early, your majesty," she spoke at last.

She stepped back into the ballroom, not giving him a chance to reply.

Ben watched as she left trying to figure out if he had said something wrong.

(Art by Friendoclock )